Well-boring apparatus.



C. E. WILCOX.

WELL BORING APPARATUS.

APPLscATIoN FILED AuG.18,191s.

Patentcd Mm'. 2T, 12H7.

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2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

. support the drilling string 1.1 g1 l a CHARLES E. WILCOX, OF KEENE, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR OF ON E-THIRD T0 OIL WELL SUPPLY COMPANY, 0F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, AND ONE-THIRD T0 WILLIAM G. KNAPP, OF ALHAMBRA, CALIFORNIA.

WELL-BORIN G APPARATUS.

f Patented Mar. 27, 1911'.

Original application filed August 1, 1913, Serial No. 782,492. Divided and this application 1ed August 18,

1915. Serial No. 46,191.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. a citizen of the United States, residingat Keene, in the county of Kern and State of California, have invented a new and useful fell-Boring Apparatus, of which the following is a specification. l

This application is a division in part of my prior eo-pendingapplication Serial No. 782.492 filed Aug. 1, 1913.

The invention relates to systems for drilling and more particularly to the so-called rotary system commonly employed in drilling oil wells in California and in the Midcontinental field. In this system a string of drill pipe is employed, to the lower end of which is secured a bit which produces the well as the string of pipe is rotated. The pipe is commonly driven at the surface by means of a. rotary table and a continuous stream of mud laden liquid is pumped downwardly through the drill pipe to the bit, passing upwardly outside the drill pipe and carrying with it the cuttings. The merits of this particular system of drilling and the process of using mud laden liquid are well known in the art and need not be described here. In the early types of rotary drilling apparatus the drilling pipe proper was gripped in the rotary table, but there have recently been developed several systems having a positive drive, the one in most general use using a square drill stem secured to the top of the drilling string. As the drilling string is continuously turned during the drilling operation while the mud laden liquid is being supplied thereto, it is necessary to provide some form of'swiveled VVILcox,

.connection at the top throughl which mud laden liquid may be supplied to the rotating stein.

It is further necessary to continuously so that the pressure on the bit may be controlled, and this is most conveniently done by hanging the string on a bearing supported by the derrick.

The principal object of the invention is to provide means for so supporting the drilling string. The hazard in handling long strings of drill pipe, such as are commonly employed in deep wells, is extremely great,

las if the operator should by any' chance allow the strip to drop, even over a short distance, disastrous results will follow, the drilling string being so broken or bent that 1t may be impossible to remove it from the well and a total loss of the well may follow. It is therefore essential that the supporting means for the drill pipe should be very reliable Iand positive. In the swivels which have been developed the supporting means and the swiveled mud connection have been formed as a single unit provided with a bail, the weight of the drilling string being taken on a ball or roller bearing supported from the bail, the drill stem being secured below the bearing by means of a screw connection. This screw connection'between the end of the drill stem and the bearing is objectionable in that it may become disengaged during the drilling of the well, thereby dropping the string with the results above noted. A further object of the invention is to provide means whereby the bearing is positively secured to the drilling stem, the screw connection being made above the bearing and none of the weight of the drill stem being supported thereby.

In the usual form of swivel the bail has formed a part of the swivel construction and it has been necessary to disengage this bail from the hook and to provide a supplemental device comlnonly known as an elevator whenever it was desired to raise the string for the purpose of replacing or sharpening the bit or for the purpose of adding additional lengths of the string. These elevators are standard in the art and consist of links adapted to engage a hook from which they are supported and detachable means by which the elevators may be clamped around the drill pipe.

A further object of my invention is to provide swiveled means which may be used to'support the drill stem under normal conditions, but which may be readily adapted to the lifting of the drill pipe, thus saving the expense of a standard elevator.

In a thrust bearing designed to carry the heavy loads which are imposed in rotary drilling, it is necessary to provide perfect lubrication. A further object of my-in/vention is to provide means whereby the bearing of the swivel may be run in an oil bath sol View partly in elevation,

which will require little attention over long periods and which will be vvery efficient in minimizing friction.

Referring to the drawings, illustrative purposes only:

Figure 1 is a central vertical sectional of a portion of certain features of well boring apparatus organized to embody the invention as used to supply mud laden fluid to the drill stem.

Fig. 2 is a transverse view or section of the same taken on the line a02- x2 Fig. 1, and looking in the direction of the appended arrows.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail transverse sectional view taken on 1, and looking in the direction of the appended arrows.

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation of a modified form of my invention.

Fig. is a sectional elevation of a second modification of my invention.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 069-009 of Figs. 'i' and 8, looking in the direction of the arrows.

My invention consists of a swiveled suppo-rting member 11 and a swiveled water supply member 12 which may be secured at the upper end of the drill stem 13. This drill stem may consist of an ordinary section of drill pipe 13, as illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, or it may consist of a forged stem 14 as illustrated in Figs. 4 and In either case the drill stem projects downwardly inside the casing 15 of the well, as illustrated in Fig. 1. The-swiveled supporting member 11 consists essentially of a rotor 16 and a stator 17, the rotor 16 and its connected parts turning with the drill pipe 13, and the stator 17 being stationary and supported from the dei-rick; For this purpose the bail 18 is provided, this bail engaging cylindrical lugs 19 formed on a body member 20 of the stator 17. The ends of the bail 18 are secured on the lugs 19 by means of washers 21 and bolts 22. The body member 20 has a central bore 23 in which an oil retaining member 24 tightly fits, this member 24 having side walls 25 and 26, which extend up and inclose a. lower ball race 27, a series of balls 28, and an upper ball race 29, the ball race 29 being part of the rotor 1G and being carried in a cap 30. A plug 31 is screwed into the bottom of the body 20, this plug having an opening 32 therein which is considerably7 larger than the maximum diameter of a collar 33, this collar 33 having approximately the same size as the collar used to join the sections of drill pipe 13 together. The opening in which the plug 31 is screwed is of sufficiently large diameter to pass the largest size' of collar that can be used in the well. The cap 30 has a sleeve 34 formed thereon, this sleeve extending down inside the wall which are for 26 of the oil retainer 23. The sleeve 34 has an internal diameter greater than the maximum external diameter of the collar 33 and the collars on the drill pipe, so that the collars can pass freely therethrough. A series of hooks 35 are secured by means of screws 36 on the oil retainer 23, and extend up and are bent over, engaging a flange 37 formed on the cap 30 so that there is no likelihood of the cap 30 falling out of place while the apparatus is being handled and allowing the balls 28 to become lost.

split bushing 38 is provided, this bushing consisting of a sleeve portion 39 and a head 40, the sleeve portion 39 fitting between the sleeve 34 and the drill pipe 13 and the head,

the head 40 projecting over the top of the cap 30.

The lower edge of the collar 33 rests on the top of the bushing 38 and is supported thereby. It is evident that the pipe 13 is supported by means of a collar 33 and the bushing 38, and that the pipe 13 and the cap 30 may turn as a unit, rolling on the balls 28.

For the purpose of supplying water to the interior of the pipe 13, the swiveled water connection 12 is provided. This water connection consists of a body 42 which has external threads 43 formed thereon, these threads screwing into the top of the collar 33. The body 42 has an opening 44 formed therein, this opening being filled with packing members 45 and 4G which may be sepa.- rated by a spring 4T if desired. The packing members 45 and 4G are compressed by means of a follower 48 which is screwed down by means of bolts 45) pivoted in lugs 5() on the body 42. A water supply pipe 51 extends downwardly inside the packing members 45 and 4G and has a collar 52 formed thereon. this collar fitting in a eavity 53 in the follower 48. this follower being made in two halves, as shown in Fig. 3, and bolted together by means of the bolts 54. Secured to the upper end of the pipe 5l is any suitable type of water connection, such as a T and a water supply pipe 56, thesepipes being connected by means of a flexible hose to any convenient source of water supply.

In the form of my invention illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5. the construction of the rotor 1G and the stator 17 is exactly similar to that described in connection with Fig. 1. Bushings G0 are used, however, these bushings having an annular groove G1 cut in the upper end thereof into which sectional rings 62 lit, these sectional rings being secured by plates 63 and bolts G4. The sectional ring G2 extends into a groove 65 cut in the drill stem 14.

In the form of water connection shown in Fig. 4, a body 6G is provided having a cavity in which packing G7 is placed, this packing being forced downwardly by a follower 4 drill stem 14 is 68 and by bolts 69, the body member 66 hav-l ing a flange 70 which is secured to the top of the drill stem 14 by means of bolts 71. Hydraulic packing 72 is placed in the joint for the purpose of assisting in making it water tight. A water supply pipe 473 eX- tends downwardly inside the packing 67, the packing being compressed therearound by the follower 68, water supply pipe 73 having a nut 7 4 threaded thereon, lthis nut being held in a cavity 75, formed in the follower 66, by a cover 76 which is held in place by the bolts 69. Any suitable form of water connection may be applied to the up= per end of the supply pipe 73, a goose-neck fitting 77, a coupling 78, and a hose connection 79, being illustrated.

In the form of my invention illustrated in Fig. 5, the flange 70 is dispensed with, the lower end of the body 80 having an internal thread 81 which is adapted to be screwed upon an external thread 82 formed 4on the upper end of the drill stem 14, the body 80 corresponding to the body 66 and containing packing and a water pipe connection eX- actly as shown and described in Fig. 4.

The method of operation of the invention is as follows The bail 18 being supported by any suitable means from the derrick, with the parts in the position shown in Figs. 1, 4 or 5, the drill pipe 13 or the drill stem 14 can be rotated, the weight of the suspended parts being taken on the balls 28 which run in an oil bath while being carried in the oil carrier 23 between the side walls 25 and 26, so that the apparatus will run for long periods without attention. Water or mud is supplied through the water connection 12 from any suitable source. When it is desired to pull drill pipe from the well, the pipe 13 or the pulled upwardly into such a position that the next succeeding collar, or tool joint as it is commonly called, is above the rotary table, the pipe then being supported from the rotary table by means of suitable slips. The pipe 13 or the drill stem 14 can then be disconnected from the neXt joint of drill pipe, and it has become a practice to stand it up in the corner of the derrick, the weight resting on the floor of the derrick. The weightof the drill stem being taken by the floor of the derrick, the supporting member 11 may be lowered into such a position that the collar 33 can be removed, carrying with it the water connection and all its parts. The bushing 38 can then be removed, and the cap 30 may be slipped l0H over the collar on the upper section of the pipe which is supported on the Hoor of the derrick. The oil retainer 24, the cap 30, the ball races 27 and 29, and the balls 28 are removed from the body member 20.

It is also to be noted that the weight supporting means are either placed directly below the collar on the pipe 33, orare attached directly to the drill stem 14 as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, so that there are no special connections below the weight supporting means, the water supply means bemg entirely independent over and above the weight supporting means.

I claim as my invention:

1. A swivel for a string of drill pipe comprising a stator, a rotor supported by said stator, means for minimizing the friction between the rotorand stator, means for supporting the stator, a swiveled means for supplying mud laden fluid to the drill pipe, a driving stem adapted to be secured to the drill pipe and passing through the center of said rotor and stator, threaded means for securing the driving stem to the swiveled means, and means located below said threaded means and independent'of said threaded means for supporting said driving stem on said rotor.

2. A swivel for av string of drill pipe comprising a stator, a rotor supported by sald stator, means for minimizing the friction between the rotor and stator, means for supporting the stator, a swiveled means for supplying mud laden Huid to the drill p1pe, a drill stem adapted to be secured to the upper end of the string of drill pipe and passing through said rotor and stator, supporting means for securing said drill stem to sald rotor, and means for securing said swlveled means to said drill stem above said' supporting means.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand at Keen, California, this 10th day of July, 1915.

CHARLES E. WILCQL 

